by Chad Jennings, USA TODAY Sports

by Chad Jennings, USA TODAY Sports

Last year was supposed to be the Toronto Blue Jays' year. They had spent lavishly in the offseason, traded for missing pieces, and had become a popular preseason pick to take advantage of a vulnerable American League East. Toronto was finally going to rise to the top of the division for the first time since its 1993 championship.

Instead, the Blue Jays finished in last place, a full 23 games behind the Boston Red Sox with the fifth-worst record in the American League.

Those preseason predictions, it seems, were a year off.

Back to being essentially dismissed as usual heading into this season, the Blue Jays begin a three-game series at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night having taken early control of the division.

With a powerful lineup and finally consistent pitching, Toronto is 41-30 with the second-most wins in the American League and a 4½-game lead over the second-place Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees.

"You knew how dangerous they were offensively," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "They went through some injuries last year just like everybody else. Sometimes it's hard to overcome those. They've had a pretty consistent rotation, for the most part, this year. They've had to some make changes, they've had some guys that have gotten out to great starts. But we knew that they were very talented."

The defending champion Red Sox have played below .500, and the usually reliable Rays have the fewest wins in the American League. The Yankees and Orioles have battled injuries while trying to stay above .500, and that's left the door open to the Blue Jays, who lead the league in home runs and have a league-average team ERA.

The Blue Jays are tied for the second-largest division lead in the either league.

The Yankees next 15 games are against division opponents - with six of those games against Toronto - meaning this next stretch of games is a chance to cut into that division deficit and gain ground on the suddenly viable Blue Jays. Twelve of those next 15 games are at Yankee Stadium.

"You can't afford to have a losing streak against guys that you're chasing," Mark Teixeira said. "So these are all going to be big games."

For the Yankees, this stretch starts with their strongest weapon, Masahiro Tanaka, getting the start in Tuesday's series opener. It will be Tanaka's second time facing the Blue Jays. The first time was his major-league debut, a game Tanaka won after allowing a home run to the first batter he faced.

"I don't look at myself becoming a different pitcher (since that debut)," Tanaka said. "But I can say that I've gotten a little bit more used to the (American) game. I know how to prepare before games, the preparation going into a game. That would probably be a difference from the first time going into now."

The Yankees have fought for consistency all season, but they've been battling injuries in their rotation and underwhelming production from key hitters. If consistency is going to finally come, this would be a good time for it to happen.

The division hasn't gotten out of reach yet, but the Blue Jays look like they just might be a legitimate force this season. Better to close the gap now before it's too late.

"You don't want to make too much of it," Girardi said. "But it's obviously an important period when you're going to see the teams that we're going to see. It's a huge stretch against East Coast teams, and you have a chance to make up ground, and put distance between other teams and yourself."

Jennings writes for the (Westchester County, N.Y.) Journal News, a Gannett affiliate